Fluid commutating device



June 2 1965 J. L. RAWLINGS 3, 9 5

. FLUID COMMUTATING DEVICE \Filed NOV. 8, 1962 INVENTOR. I JOHN L RAWZ/A GS.

ATTOk/VE) United States Patent FLUID COMMUTATING DEVICE John L. Rawlings, Wilton, C0nn., assignor to Sperry Rand Corporation, New York, N .Y., a corporation of Delaware Filed Nov. 8,1962, SeraNo. 236,297 1 Claim. (Cl. 137-62511) This invention relates generally to the field of fluid devices. Though the invention has general utility as a sequencing or steppingunit, it has particular application in connection with a punched card reader employing fluid logic and will be so described. Use of this invention simplifies the problems arising in reading a perforated record medium either in a column-by-column or in a row-by-row manner.

There has been, in recent years, extensive investigation and development in the field of fluid logic devices. Units constructed to operate on a fluid logic basis have the advantage of being free of moving parts, have no heat dissipation problems and are generally more economical than units performing corresponding functions which are mechanica'l, electro-mechanical or electronic.

a One problem that has arisen in connection with fluid logic developmentis that of providing the initial information in the form of a pattern of fluid pressure from an information medium containing the data in another form. For example, in the field of punched card readers, there are many approaches present-1y used to derive information in the form of electric signals or mechanical displacements of sensing pins, etc., and it is possible to proceed from information in that intermediate form, through appropriate conversion devices, to derive the same information in the. fluid form. The present invention provides-a mechanism which will permit the derivation of information in the form of fluid signals directly from a perforated record medium such as a punched card or punched tape.

Briefly stated, the invention provides first and second blocks of fluid impermeable materials which are located so that one face of the first block slides along one face of the second block. An equal plurality of channels are formed in each block. The channels in the first block :are adapted to be connected between a source of fluid pressure and the abutting surface of the first block and the channels of the second block extend from the abutting surface of the second block to the opposite surface thereof. The channels in each block are spaced so that when any channel in one block is in line with a channel in the other block, all of the remaining channels are ineffective to transmit fluid pressure from the source through the second block.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a fluid commutating device.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a sequencing mechanism for fluid signals.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a mechanism suitable for use with a punched card reader using fluid logic.

Other and further objects and advantages of this invention will become clear when the following description is read in conjunction with the accompanying figures. The scope of he invention will be pointed out with particularity in the appended claims.

FIGURE 1 is a partial view in section of a preferred embodiment of the invention.

FIGURE 2 is a sectional View of the unit shown in FIGURE 1 taken along line 22 of that figure.

Referring now to FIGURE 1. First and second blocks and 11 are partially shown in section. These blocks may be made of any suitable fluid impermeable material such as plastic, metal, glass, etc. Block 10 will be referred to as the selector block and block 11 as the fixed block. A fluid inlet 13 formed in block 10 communicates with a plurality of vertically disposed channels, also formed therein, of which three are shown, 14, 15, and 16, through a connecting header 17. The spacing between any adjacent pair of channels 14, 15, and 16 is preferably the same, but should not be less than a minimum distance, and we shall identify this minimum spacing by the letter W. The diameter of each of channels 14, 15, and 16 is also preferably equal and bears a relationship to distance W as will be shortly seen. The diameter of these channels will be identified by the letter D. Various methods of forming the several channels, ducts, conduits, ports, etc., are known and their method of formation is not a part of this invention.

Fixed block 11 also has a plurality of vertical channels formed therein, one associated with each of the channels in block 10. Thus, there are the same number of channels in fixed block 11 as there are in selector block 10, and again three are shown, identifiedby reference numerals 18, 19, and 20. Unlike channels 14, 15 and 16, channels 18, 1? and 20 are isolated from one another. The distance between any adjacent pair of channels 18,19 and 20 in fixed block 11 is preferably a constant and the diameter of the channels in fixed block 11 is the same as the diameter of its correspondingchannel in select-or block 10, all of which, in the preferred embodiment, are alike. The minimum distance between channels in the fixed block is chosen to be W+D.

Where N separate counts or selections are required, the relationship between minimum distance W and diameter -D is W/D N. The absolute distance between adjacent channels or the absolute diameter of the channels may vary provided that the above relationship is maintained.

With the relative positions of selector block 10 and fixed block 11 shown in FIGURE 1, it will be observed that only channel 14 and channel 18 are in line so that fluid introduced at inlet 13 will pass through channel 18 via header 1'7 and mating channel 14. All other channels in fixed block 11 will be sealed by the, material of selector block 10. As selector block 10 is stepped in the direction of the arrow, one increment of distance D, channel 18 will cease to conduct fluid since it no longer communicates with inlet 13 but channel 19 will be connected to that inlet through channel 15 of selector block 10 which will now be in line. As the selector block 10 continues to he stepped, channels 20, etc., in fixed block 11 will sequentially conduct fluid as their cooperating channels in the selector block move into alignment.

Only one of the channels in fixed block 11 will communicate with fluid inlet 13 at any given position of se- 'lector block 10 due to the relationship set forth above between the spacing of adjacent channels and the diameter of the channels. After the Nth increment of motion of selector block 10, channel 14 will be in the position channel 15 occupies in FIGURE 1 and the last channel in selector block 10 will be in line with the last chan nel in fixed block 11.

The means for moving selector block 14 is not shown and does not form a part of this invention, but may be of any suitable type, i.e., mechanical, electro-mechanical or fluid. For example, a simple rack and pinion could be used.

In an application where the mechanism shown in FIG- URE 1 is to be used to read a punched card in a columnby-column manner (for example, a -column card), there would be 45 channels in selector block 10 and 45 channels in fixed block 11. At this point, it should be emphasized that while the terms fixed block and selector block have been used and while the description has stated that selector block 10 is moved, all that is re- 3 quired is relative displacement between the two blocks. This could be achieved in the manner described above, or by moving block 11, or by moving both blocks. For such an application, a channel corresponding to each of channels 1416 and 18-20 and the other channels in each of the blocks which are not shown would have to be provided for each row of the card, i.e., there would have to be 12 channels corresponding to channel 14, etc., for the standard punched card. Each of these 12 channels could be separately supplied by its own inlet 13 and header 17, or the units could be arranged as shown in FIGURE 2, which represents a cross section of the structure shown in FIGURE 1 taken along a line 22 thereof, wherein a single inlet 13 supplies the fluid for all 12 column channels. In this figure the same reference numerals designate identical parts. It is not believed that further description is required of FIGURE 2.

Of course, in an 80-column card, column-by-column application, 12 channels would also be employed but, the particular number of channels provided will be determined by the particular application. For example, in a row-by-row application, a 90-column card unit would have 45 channels and an 80-column card unit would have 80 channels. Similarly in a punched tape operation, the number of channels would be diiferent.

It will be appreciated from the above description that the free end of channels 18, 19, 20, etc., can be connected to the separate columns of a reader block so that when a card is on the block, fluid pressure will sequentially be applied to the first, second and third, etc., columns. Further, it will be appreciated that to accomplish this, block need be moved relative to block 11 a total distance equal only to the distance between two adjacent channels, e.g., 14 and 15.

Thus, to switch from one channel to another, the channels being spaced a maximum distance WN apart, the two blocks need not be displaced relative to one another such as distance, but the switching can be done with a maximum displacement of only W. This, of course, results in a substantial saving not only in time but also in the force required to achieve the switching.

While what has been shown and described above is believed to be the best mode and a preferred embodiment of the invention, modifications and variations may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention, as will be clear to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the scope of the invention is intended to be limited solely by the appended claim.

What is claimed is:

In a punched card reader; a first member having a flat surface, a plurality of columns of channels formed in said first member, each of said channels in said first member adapted to communicate between a source of fluid pressure and said flat surface of said first memher, a second member having a fiat surface abutting said fiat surface of said first member, a column of channels formed in said second member for each of said columns in said first member with each channel in said column corresponding to a channel in one of said columns of said first member, adjacent ones of said columns of channels in said first member being separated by a distance equal to the distance minus the diameter of one channel between corresponding adjacent columns of channels in said .second member with the spacing between adjacent columns of channels in said second member being equal to the diameter of a channel multiplied by the number of columns of channels in said second member, each of said channels in said second member adapted to communicate between said fiat surface of said second member and an output port, said first and second members being adapted to move along their abutting surfaces relative to each other, said columns of channels in said first and second members being positioned so that each of the channels ina selected column of said first member communicates with a respective one of the channels in a selected column of said second member.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,182,153 12/39 Kucher 137625.4 2,447,423 8/48 Nies 137625 11 2,904,070 9/ 5 9 Lynott 137-5 52.5

FOREIGN PATENTS 144,367 5/61 Russia.

M. CARY NELSON, Primary Examiner.

LAVERNE D. GEIGER, Examiner. 

